The sport of golf is very popular in the world today. Technological innovations have been regularly improving almost every aspect of the game, including the equipment used to tote the golf clubs both on and away from the golf course. Golf bags that were once made from heavy canvas and steel rods have been replaced by bags made from lighter, more durable composites, metals, plastics, and other materials.
Many golfers attach their golf bags to transport devices for play, such as manually powered golf carts (e.g., user propelled push or pull carts) or self-propelled carts (e.g., motorized golf carts, optionally carts on which one or more golfers may ride). Typically, golf bags will be secured to these transport devices using a securing strap that extends at least partially around the golf bag to hold the bag in place with respect to the transport device. The securing straps usually contact toward the top of the bag (well above the bag's center of gravity) to help prevent the bag from spilling off the transport device (e.g., on hills, on quick starts or stops, etc.).
Conventional golf bags also often include one or more pockets or compartments in which various items and golf accessories may be carried. For instance, pockets often are provided to hold golf balls, golf tees, towels, ball markers, rain gear, and the like. Due to the size of golf bags and their necessary portable nature, the area for including pockets is somewhat limited. Because the top of the golf bag often is needed for engaging a securing strap of a transport device, as noted above, the top central area of many golf bags will not include pockets because pockets at that location would typically be crushed when the securing strap is engaged around the bag, thereby crushing and potentially damaging the contents of the bag and/or limiting access to the pocket. Thus, pockets typically are provided at lower portions of the golf bag structure and at the sides of the golf bag structure. Low pockets force the user to repeatedly bend down to gain access to the items stored in the pockets. Side mounted pockets also can be difficult to access, e.g., particularly when two golf bags are mounted in close proximity to one another on a single transport device or when sides of the transport device are in close proximity to the pockets.
Not all transport devices hold golf bags in the same orientation. Some transport devices (or transporting techniques) may cause the clubs to lean (under the force of gravity) in one direction with respect to the bag, while other transport devices (or transporting techniques) may cause the clubs to lean (under the force of gravity) in another direction (and often in the opposite direction) with respect to the bag. If the clubs with longer shafts (e.g., woods) are positioned at a “lower position” in the golf bag than clubs with shorter shafts (e.g., irons) when the bag is being used, the heads of the shorter clubs can bang into the shafts of the longer clubs and damage the shafts (e.g., including structural damage that may weaken the shafts and/or aesthetic damage, such as scratches, dings, etc.).
Many golf bags have club dividers or separators with locations or compartments specifically tailored for holding certain clubs, such as the driver, the putter, etc. In such bags, if the compartment for the driver is located on the “low side” of the bag with respect to a specific transport device or technique, this risks damage to the driver shaft due to the heads of the irons banging into the driver shaft. In an effort to address this problem, bags may come in two styles, e.g., one style with special compartments (e.g., for the driver or putter) located at a first side of the bag (for transport devices or techniques in which the clubs lean one direction) and another style with these same special compartments (e.g., for the driver or putter) located at the opposite side of the bag (for transport devices or techniques in which the clubs lean in the opposite direction). These “fixes” increase manufacturing costs and complexities because the club divider fits into the bag body in only one orientation, which requires more manufacturing controls (to assure proper orientation of the parts during assembly) and/or greater bag part inventories (to enable the manufacturer to make bags of both styles). Also, the manufacturer may need to target specific bag styles to specific locations or markets (e.g., to locations or markets having one type of transport devices or techniques or the other).
Accordingly, there is room for improvement in the golf bag art, at least in the various areas noted above.